Astra AB

Astra AB was a former international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Södertälje, Sweden. Astra was formed in 1913 and merged with the British Zeneca Group in 1999 to form AstraZeneca. Product development was focused on therapeutics for gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and respiratory disorders and pain control. At the time of the fusion, Astra was the largest Swedish pharmaceutical company. Astra also operated Astra Tech, a medical devices company, and marketed pharmaceuticals outside their primary development area, including anti-infective agents. The issue of domestic industrial production of pharmaceuticals in Sweden, as opposed to manual preparations by pharmacists had been discussed among Swedish pharmacists since mid-1890s....